WASHINGTON – APS.dz.-US Representative Jamaal Bowman has formally withdrawn his support for a bipartisan bill aimed at expanding Arab-Israeli normalization, saying it is harmful to Palestine and Western Sahara.
“This agreement to normalize relations unnecessarily isolates Palestine and Western Sahara, when we need a process that involves them”, wrote the member of the Chamber of Deputies on Tuesday in a letter to his voters.
“I am writing to inform you that I will withdraw my co-sponsorship of this bill, and if it comes to the House for a vote, I will vote no,” said the Democrat.
Congressman Bowman signed this bill into law in September 2021, following its introduction in April of the same year, before changing his stance following a visit to Palestine in late 2021.
“During this visit, I continued to dig deep and contact people directly on the ground, including senior Palestinian and Israeli government officials,” he said in the letter relayed by the press.
“While I originally co-sponsored this legislation, seeing it as an opportunity to advance justice in the Middle East, as well as a path to a two-state solution, my experience on the ground and my extensive discussion with voters’ allowed me to see that this is not the right direction to achieve these goals”, he explains.
“Furthermore, I realized that the transactions that this bill supports and seeks to extend include agreements contrary to human rights and the security of ordinary citizens in the region, including recognition of Morocco’s control of Western Sahara,” says Bowman.
According to the elected Democrat, “these actions only exacerbate violence in the Middle East and make communities, already vulnerable, less secure.”
Marcus Frias, a spokesman for Bowman, said in a statement that the congressman “takes the thoughts and suggestions of his constituents very seriously and appreciates their involvement in the legislative process.”
